Hi there, I'm Elin!

I'm a writer working on my first novel and writing about personal growth for creatives.

I live in Sweden with my fiancé Petrus and our two beloved cats Alice and Pysen. I'm happiest when I'm living slowly, with plenty of time to write, nature outside my door, a pot of green tea, a good book and a camera close at hand.

I believe that going after your creative goals are a much more pleasant experience when you are on your own side.

Holding yourself back is tiring. Believe me, I've tried. I became interested in personal growth as it relates to creativity after realizing my creative fears were holding me back from writing my first novel.

It happens so easily. Creative projects tend to surface many of our internal struggles, especially when they force us to challenge ourselves. Fear, self-doubt and perfectionism pop up to stand in the way, making us procrastinate, self-sabotage or stay small.

But if we are open to reflecting and learning more about ourselves, then working towards creative goals can help us grow both as creatives and as humans. We can make better, intentional choices. We can be kinder to ourselves.

We can listen to what we need and learn how we work best, so we can finally make progress toward those goals that mean so much to us.

This is what I value and believe in

Finding the creative within you

I believe that we are all creative and that creative skill comes from hard work rather than talent. Never having created a certain thing or having tried and failed doesn't mean you can't be successful in the future, if you hone your craft.

Living your own truth

We are all different and our creative journeys will all look different. They key is to figure out what you want out of your creative life, what you value and hold on to that. 

Life-long learning and growing

I believe that understanding the world and yourself, to keep learning and growing, is important parts of life. Working through our creative struggles and finding better mindsets can truly make the whole difference.

My story 

Books have always been a big part of my life. As a kid I was a creative bookworm who dreamed about becoming an author and writing stories like the ones I loved.

But I was shy and not very sure of myself, and while I was a bit of an outsider I also wanted to please my surroundings.

So when I as a teenager was told that being an author is only for the very best, I decided I wasn't creative enough and locked away my dream deep in my heart.

After a few years at university with no creative writing, I felt like I had lost a part of myself. I missed writing so deeply I knew I had to at least try to write. But what used to come naturally as a kid, the craft I loved to pieces, was like fighting against myself. I had been told too many times that creativity is only for the chosen few, the naturals, the very best and I couldn't possibly believe I could be one of them. And yet... I felt I had to.

My big secret was that I had never given up my childhood dream of being an author, and I was terrified of failing. 

I wrote and hated what I wrote. I wrote in bursts and then fell into creative blocks. I didn't dare to commit, I hid and downplayed my dream and yet it was stronger than ever. After a few years of on-and-off writing, I understood that my fear of failing was becoming a self-fulfilling prophesy. I would never finish my book because by not daring to fail, I was robbing myself of the chance of success too. 

I had to deal with the core issue: my creative fears.

So in 2016, I set out on what I called my Fear Year. With a heart beating from both fear and years of unreleased creative energy, I started blogging, I explored painting and I finished the second draft of my novel. I won't tell you the whole story, but most of all I learned how my own thinking affected my creativity.

I have learned to be aware of my mindset around my creative projects and to make intentional choices about how I work, and it has made all the difference.

Now I don't hesitate to call my life a creative one. My creative confidence is much stronger and I'm making steady progress on the third draft of my novel. Along the way I keep exploring personal growth and sharing what I learn.

This journey I've gone through has changed so much in my life and I see that so many of us creatives are struggling with the same things. I'm passionate about finding good ways of creating, living and growing, for all of us. 

Because I believe that going after creative dreams can be a key puzzle piece to happiness and fulfillment in life, and to make them happen we need to learn to be our own biggest creative supporters.

Are you ready?

Read the blog, where I write about being your own biggest supporter when going after your creative dreams.

READ THE BLOG

Or send me an email and tell me about your journey!
I'd love to share a virtual cup of tea.

hi@elinloow.com